Diagnosis on a positive fashion of nonorganic failure to thrive

AIMS: To study the predictive value of predefined symptoms and signs for allocating children into one of two groups: nonorganic and organic failure to thrive. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Two hundred eight outpatients (6 months-14 years old) suffering from failure to thrive (FTT) were included in the study. Predefined symptoms and signs were considered as potential predictors of organic/nonorganic failure to thrive. All patients underwent an established diagnostic work up in order to exclude organic causes of FTT. RESULTS: The percentage of patients without any organic symptom (negative predictive value), who were diagnosed as NOFTT was 92\%; the percentage of patients having nonorganic symptoms only (positive predictive value), who were diagnosed as NOFTT was 96\%, while their absence does not exclude a NOFTT diagnosis as well (negative predictive value = 41\%). CONCLUSION: The detection of at least one nonorganic symptom or sign, with the exclusion of any organic symptom, can support a diagnosis of nonorganic FTT and therefore only few laboratory investigations seem to be warranted.